Nick Saban-to-the-Colts Talk in November is So Stupid
By Jason McIntyre
Chuck Pagano, the coach of the Indianapolis Colts, is a goner at season’s end, that much is obvious. His general manager, Ryan Grigson, should lose his job too, and he probably will.
If you’re up for replacement ideas … hey, how about Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide! (Hold laughter until the end.)
Bob Kravitz, probably the most plugged-in NFL writer in Indianapolis, went on the radio and said that Colts owner Jim Irsay is almost certainly going to clean house at season’s end, and he’d love to hire Saban to be the coach and GM. Saban turned 64 recently. A decade ago, he spent two forgettable seasons in the NFL as coach of the Dolphins (15-17, no playoff appearances) before running back to college football.
At this juncture, this one’s easy, folks: Nope. Not happening.
Is coaching Andrew Luck a dream job? Certainly. Nick Saban had the fortune of coaching Gus Frerotte and Joey Harrington for two seasons in Miami. You can’t win without a QB in the NFL.
But why is Saban leaving his glorious bubble in Tuscaloosa for the NFL at this age? The Tide are #2 in the college football playoff rankings, favored to win their final three games and the SEC title game against Florida. The Tide will be back in the college football playoff. They currently have the 6th best recruiting class in 2016, and a slew of Top 20 recruits have listed the Tide, but are yet to sign. The future continues to be rosy in Alabama.
Short of something unforeseen happening in the next few months – say, a massive scandal at Alabama – why is Saban leaving Alabama? Can anyone name a logical reason besides, “the chance to coach Andrew Luck?”